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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a line of people
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. last — final
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. rock — a stone
  8. current — electric
  9. rock — music
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. current — happening now
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. content — the amount
  15. last — to go on
  16. current — of water
  17. file — a document
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. last — finally
  21. wax — to grow
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. content — happy
  24. leaves — to go away

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com